Fulfilling electric vehicle charging infrastructure needs in Greater London and its boroughs

This study assesses targets for charging infrastructure at the borough level up to 2035, complementing the Delivery Plan created by the Mayor of London’s Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Taskforce. Specifically, it estimates the needs for public and private charging infrastructure in each of the 32 boroughs and the City of London, incorporating housing, demographic, and transport data to assess the ideal amount of charging types in each borough. In addition, the paper provides case studies with more detailed results for Westminster, Lambeth, and Redbridge.

Powering a projected 947,000 electric vehicles across London in 2030 will require public charging infrastructure to expand to more than 44,000 public chargers, an annual growth rate of more than 20% from 2020. Every borough will need at least twice as much public charging by 2030, and most boroughs will need 4 to 20 times as much. The analysis also finds that constructing additional rapid charging may be a priority in inner London boroughs, whereas public residential charging is more needed in outer London boroughs.

Shared fleets drive charging need in the near term. Due to the accelerated electrification strategy and the fact that they drive almost six times more than private passenger cars, taxis and private hire vehicles are expected to account for over 70% of charging energy demand in inner London and 50% in outer London in 2025. Over the longer term, the contribution of these fleets declines as electrification of private cars progresses.

Efforts are needed to ensure equal charging infrastructure access as central boroughs are further ahead in terms of electric vehicle uptake and public chargers’ development. In general, dense inner London boroughs will require many rapid chargers to serve daytime taxi and private hire vehicle activity. Outer London boroughs, which have higher private car ownership rates and are home to many taxi and private hire vehicle drivers, will rely more heavily on a mix of public and private residential charging. London and its boroughs can meet these targets by expanding the charging infrastructure programs already in place: installing lamppost chargers, building rapid charging hubs, strengthening building codes, consulting electric utilities, and coordinating with major fleets.

Related Content